Writer Mark Feldstein says muckraking columnist Jack Anderson cut ethical corners to get Nixon exposes, and the president responded with fury. He recounts surprising details of the long-running battle between the journalist and the politician in Poisoning the Press.
Economist Robert Reich argues that the economy isn't going to get moving again until we address a fundamental problem: the growing concentration of wealth and income among the richest Americans. He explains his fears for America's economic recovery in Aftershock: The Next Economy and America's Future.
Actor and comedian Zach Galifianakis is best known for his shaggy red beard and his hilarious role in the bachelor-party comedy The Hangover. He tells Terry Gross how he prepared himself for his latest part -- a dramatic role as a mental patient in the film It's Kind of a Funny Story.
HBO's Boardwalk Empire, set in Atlantic City in the 1920s, is about organized crime in the era of Prohibition. Series creator Terence Winter, an Emmy Award-winning writer for The Sopranos, details his enduring fascination with New Jersey gangsters.
Jim Parsons won the 2010 Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series for his portrayal of Sheldon Cooper, the socially awkward theoretical physicist in the venerable CBS nerd-comedy. He joins David Bianculli for a discussion about playing the eccentric prodigy.
Joost Buis' tunes are clean and true, and still let weird details nibble at the edges on Zooming. That sort of despoiling playfulness typifies a lot of Hollands improvised music: Just because you're serious doesn't mean you have to be serious all the time.
How do you talk people out of truly desperate situations? Gary Noesner, who spent 30 years as a hostage negotiator for the FBI, details some of his most noteworthy cases and explains the techniques he used to defuse tense, potentially life-threatening encounters.
Director Oliver Stone turned down several offers to make a sequel to his 1987 hit Wall Street, for which Michael Douglas won an Oscar as hostile-takeover king Gordon Gekko. Then the market collapsed and it seemed a good time to revisit his old antihero.
The fifth season of Dexter, which premieres Sunday night, is better than ever, says TV critic David Bianculli, who calls it "one of the most inventive and exciting shows on TV."
The acclaimed music-video director transitioned to the big screen with One Hour Photo, a dark psychological drama starring Robin Williams. Now Romanek has tackled Never Let Me Go, the futuristic thriller based on Kazoo Ishiguro's novel.
A house located on C Street in Washington, D.C., is home to many powerful conservative members of Congress who share both an ideology and an address. Jeff Sharlet details the house's mission in C Street: The Fundamentalist Threat to American Democracy.
Now that President Obama has declared the end of America's combat mission in Iraq, questions remain about the country's stability. New York Times foreign correspondent Anthony Shadid explains what the war means for the future of Iraq and the future of the Middle East.
Soprano Benita valente has retired from singing, though at 75, she's still remarkably active behind the scenes as an educator, organizer and fundraiser. She may not be the world's most famous singer, but a selection of her recordings leads off a new series on Bridge Records called Great Singers of the 20th Century. Classical music critic Lloyd Schwartz agrees with the title.
Writer David Rakoff's glass is never half full. In Half Empty, his latest essay collection, Rakoff explains the powers of pessimistic thought as he analyzes topics such as a pornography trade fair, his neurotic childhood and his recent cancer diagnosis.
Rebecca Traister's incisive analysis of misogyny and gender roles in the 2008 election takes on Tina Fey's satire, "Iron my Shirt" T-shirts and Hillary Clinton's "Night of the Imaginary Tears."
Plant's new solo album is called Band of Joy. That's the name of a group he was in back in 1967, before Led Zeppelin, with drummer John Bonham. Rock critic Ken Tucker says that if the album title suggests nostalgia for older musical styles, there's nothing musty about the results.
For the past three years, sportswriter Jim Gorant has been following the pit bulls rescued from Michael Vick's compounds. Grant, along with an animal behaviorist and dog trainer, explains how the Vick dogs have been evaluated and rehabilitated.
Today is the official start of the 2010-11 TV season, and for the first time in many years, all of the major networks are unveiling most of their new and returning shows in a single, event-packed week. Our TV critic, David Bianculli, is impressed by the effort -- but not, this year, by the results.
The documentary Catfish may not be on the up-and-up. But does it matter? David Edelstein says no. Catfish, he says, provides a "true sense of adventure" and conveys emotions that "run the gamut from anxiety to contempt to curiosity to compassion."
The new series is set in Atlantic City in the 1920s -- where corruption and organized crime run as freely as the banned booze. Critic David Bianculli is impressed by the cast, which includes Steve Buscemi and Kelly Macdonald, and says the emotionally intense drama is worth adding to your must-see list this fall.
